BKA had a major flaw. To reduce costs, soviet engineers used two petrol truck engines. The engine room was constantly filled with petrol vapors, which led to accidents in peacetime and vulnerability in combat.
BKA was vulnerable to anti-tank canons used by romanian marines in june 1941 during the heavy fighting in the Danube Delta. BKA-134 was damaged and abandoned by the soviets. She was repaired and used by the Romanian Royal Navy. The romanian navy has used six vessels of BKA class (1950-1975). One of them still exists (Romanian Navy Museum). BKA class was replaced by VB-76 class.
Pictures:
-romanian BKA on the Danube,
-photos of romanian BKA (CIA pictures-november 1964)
-the ship's interior (Romanian Navy Museum)

In 1908 Romanian Navy ordered in UK 8 patrol torpedo boats. Four of them were upgraded in 1937 (romanian Galati Shipyard) and participated in WWII.
displacement-49t, 18 kts, 1 canon 45 mm Skoda, 1 canon 20mm Oerlikon, two machineguns.
During the night of of 25/26 june 1941 (01.20 AM) the patrol torpedo boats V1 and V3 in advanced position intercepted three soviet BKA boats loaded with river mines at Mm. 42-43 comming on the Tulcea channel from Ismail to launch a mine barage. The second soviet vessel caught fire and run aground; the other two Soviet ships retreated in haste with little damage.

Romania received after WWI three monitors that belonged to the Austro-Hungarian fleet.
BASARABIA (ex. SMS INN) was rebuilt between 1941-1942 in Galati Shipyard. The old armament was removed and four modern canons SKODA-BOFORS 120mm/50 were installed in two romanian design turrets. They can fire AA and armor piercing fire. BASARABIA had 37mm AA and 20mm AA canons, 13,2 mm machine guns.
She was scrapped in 1960.

ARDEAL (ex. SMS TEMES) was rebuilt in 1937 in Galati Shipyard. The old armament was removed and two modern canons SKODA-BOFORS 120mm/50 were installed in the original turrets. She had 37mm AA and 13,2 mm machine guns; displacement 450t.
ARDEAL was scrapped in 1960.

Monitor BUCOVINA was rebuild in 1937 in Galati Shipyard. The old guns were removed. BASARABIA monitor turret has been removed and installed at the stern of monitor BUCOVINA. The old Skoda canons (120/32 mm) were replaced with Skoda-Boford 120/50mm.37mm and 20mm AA guns were added
Displacement 650t. BUCOVINA was scrapped in 1960.

There were four units of MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU class (launced in 1907, displacement 680t): MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU, ION C. BRATIANU, LASCAR CATARGIU and ALEXANDRU LAHOVARI.
In 1935 they were refit, the 120/50 SKODA-BOFORS canon replaced the old SKODA 120/32mm canon. Modern AA canons were added (37mm Rheimetall, 20mm Oerlikon, 13.2 mm Hotchkiss machine gun.
LASCAR CATARGIU was sunk in late august 1944 by soviet aircraft. She was repaired after the war. The MIHAIL KOGALNICEANU class monitors were scrapped in 1960.

Romanian Navy had several floating barges; the biggest were sunk by soviet aircraft in July 1941 in Danube Delta, but the small floating barges armed with BREDA anti-tank cannon escaped soviet air attacks and successfully fought against soviet river fleet.

There were four ships: ARGES, VEDEA, TROTUS, TELEORMAN
builder:Schichau Werke, Elbing
32 tons, length-21m, beam-3m depth-1,35m, speed-10,8kn
armament: 1x37mm Hotchkiss, 1x11,43mm Nordenfelt, two spar torpedoes
They were used for border patrol on the river Danube; during WWI the four ships had auxiliary missions.

Quoted from "The Engineer":
"The Roumanian Government have just augmented their small navy by the addition of three coastguard vessels, built by the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company, Blackwall, illustrations of which we have pleasure in publishing on page 368. The vessels are named after three rivers, the Oltul, Siretul, and Bistrita, and are of the following dimensions:
- Length between perpendiculars, 100ft.;
- beam, 13ft. 6in.;
- draught, 6ft.;
- speed, 11 knots natural draught, and 131/4 knots moderate forced draught;
- indicated power for 11 knots, 160 horses;
- coal consumption in six hours' trial, 1·97lb. per horse per hour; and with power for 13·215 knots, 2·06 lb. per horse per hour.

These vessels carry 1·57 mm (Nordenfelt) and 1·37 mm. (Hotchkiss) guns, and will prove very useful vessels at the mouth of the Danube. They left the Thames in company on August 12th, and arrived at Galatz on August 31st, coaling at Gibraltar and Malta; and after running speed trials for the satisfaction of the authorities at Galatz, were taken over, not a single hitch occurring throughout, a great satisfaction to all concerned."

During the WWI they were active as auxilliary ships. SIRETUL engaged a german coast battery at Tulcea. The BISTRITA class gunboats were scrapped after 1923.

On this page and on our two-page engraving will be found illustrations of a
screw torpedo vedette-boat, eight of which have recently been built for the service of the Royal Roumanian Government by the Thames Iron Works, Shipbuilding, and Engineering Company Limited, London.
The vessels are 100 ft. long, 13 ft. beam, with a draught of water of 2 ft. 91/2 in., and a displacement of 51 tons. The general. appearance of the boat may be gathered from Fig. 1, above, which is reproduced from a photograph.
The hulls are built throughout of steel, the deck and sides to just below the water-line being bullet-proof. The vessels are each ﬁtted with a 47 millimeter gun on top of the conning-tower forward, and a small mitrailleuse gun aft.
Gear for dropping torpedoes over the side is ﬁtted on both sides amidships, and two spar-torpedoes are ﬁtted forward over the bows. The boats are also supplied with powerful searchlight projectors, and are lighted throughout by electricity.
Accommodation is provided for four ofﬁcers and twelve men.
The problem set the Thames Company was an extremely difficult one, the maximum length allowed being 100 ft.; maximum drought 2 ft. 91/2 in; and the speed 18 knots on a trial of four hours’ duration, under penalties. Owing to the abundant supply of oil in Roumania it was also desired to use petrol. residuum as fuel.
The propellers are of bronze. 3 ft. 3 in. in diameter, three-bladed, accurately pitched and balanced.
In the steering compartment is the generating set for lighting the ship and working the projector. The 8 kilowatt dynamo was made by the Thames Iron Works electrical department, and the enclosed tandem compound engine. made by Messrs. Peter Brotherhood, Belvedere-Road. Lambeth, S.E.. has forced lubrication.
Four bilge ejectors, each of 8 tons per hour capacity, are ﬁtted, one in each compartment. Chadburn’s reply telegraphs are ﬁtted from conning tower to both engines.

The boats were designed by the late Mr, G. C. Makrow, and the ofﬁcial trial of the ﬁrst boat took place on the Thames, September 25, 1906.
The Roumanian Government were represented by:
- Major Demetriade, Director of Marine;
- Captain-Commander Balesco, President of the Commission;
- Captain Negru,
- Captain Mihail, and
- Captain Stefanesco.

This result was obtained with the two top burners only in operation. The power was maintained steadily, and generally there was absolutely no smoke or visible gases from the funnels.
The machinery, which was designed by Mr. R. Warriner, ran smoothly and without vibration; no sign of heating was observed in any of the bearings, although only the ordinary oil service was used. On the stopping and starting trial the engines were easily and rapidly manipulated by one man."

There were eight ships. Two ships were lost during WWI. The remaining vessels were rebuilt after 1930. V1 and V3 destroyed a soviet gunboat (BKA-1125 class) in june 1941. The ships were deleted after 1958.